Post Fifteen: Open Space

We ventured up to Madrone Haus on Wednesday, ostensibly so we could meet with the folks we were lining up to do the clearing of the land around the house.

Thursday morning, we convened with Manuel Martinez and Scott a bit later than planned, but the end result of a walk around the property ended with a conversation about what time the next morning they would start, and can we pay by check or cash.

What happened the next morning was amazing. I greeted the "foreman" and told them to let me know they had any questions. Barry unfortunately had conference calls from 7 to 10, but I set up my "office" on the deck, and watched as the crew of 10 or so men began the process of clearing our forest.

They worked from 7:30 to almost 5 PM, taking only a short break right a noon to have lunch. They labored tirelessly, chain saws humming, up and down the slopes, hauling hugh piles of brush and small trees down on their backs, stopping only to refill their machinery with gasoline. The huge chipper located centrally and backed into a flat area in the lower grove, worked endlessly chewing up everything dumped into it, spraying sweet smelling wood nuggets into the air and down into piles to be later spread all over the ground.
When they began to gather up to end the day, Barry asked Manuel if we could offer them all a cold beer. That went over well.

After they had left, the wood dust literally began to settle, and a new feeling began to fall over the place. I finished my last conference call of the day, and Barry toured me around.



It was astonishing how much usable land we now had. As much as I wrote earlier about seeing the forest through the trees, in one day, we had gone from having a small area of cleared dirt around the house to at least an acre of land with numerous trails and roads connecting knolls and draws and small groves; seasonal creeks and places to pitch a tent or have a picnic, set up a hammock and read a book, take a walk. And, clearly with potential to expand all this to more of the ten acres.




It's actually pretty overwhelming. The fact we have been able to acquire not only a great house that is increasingly becoming more homey, but all this amazing land. As Barry says.... "It's like our own park." Indeed it is. Shurtz Family Open Space.